The recent cold spell may have done little for Whitbread’s Beefeater and
Brewers Fayre pub-restaurants, but it did wonders for the company’s Costa
coffee shops.

Stronger-than-expected trading from Costa, which enjoyed an 8 per cent jump in
like-for-like sales in the first quarter, and by the budget Premier Inn
chain, pushed Whitbread’s overall like-for-like figures up 3.1 per cent in
the 13 weeks to May 30, with total sales for the leisure group — including
new openings — 13.8 per cent higher.

Andy Harrison, the Whitbread chief executive, said that although there was no
sign of improvement in market conditions, the group